Russia may form state oil reserve

Russian functionaries have started their first studies for the formation of a state oil reserve, a structure similar to the gold and currency reserve, Izvestia reports.

The Ministry for Energy announced a tender for feasibility studies of the state oil reserve in late August. It was won by the Moscow Institute for Energy and Finances. The main conclusion of the report on the topic is that Russia does need such structure.

The oil reserve may have two purposes. Firstly, it would be used to influence the domestic market, although the oil prices are set by foreign developments and the structure would have little effect on the prices. Secondly, the main goal of the reserve is to regulate exports. Vladimir Feygin, President of the Institute for Energy and Finances, a co-author of the reports for the Energy Ministry, said that it could give extra income.

Many states have own oil reserves. The International Energy Agency (IEA) unites the largest oil importers and demands them to stockpile the amount of petroleum they need for 90 days. Such reserves are formed in the US, Germany, France and South Africa. Norway has reserves for 20 days. Oil reserves are hardly sold on the market. The IEA recommended strategic reserves of oil to be sold due to a rise of oil prices during the war in Libya in mid-2010.

The US stores over 100 million tons of oil in 4 underground facilities, paying $2 per ton every year. It means that Russia would need to spend about $30 million to store 15 million tons of oil. Exploitation of oil reserves should cover the expenses, authors of the report say.